The Eclipse Waltz
by laughingcactus62
Summary: When Princess Winter decides to take a break from the Lunar Ball for a breath of fresh air, she is pleasantly surprised when a certain song and a certain boy find her on the balcony... Princess Winter and Jacin Clay One-shot. This is about the embarrassing moment mentioned in Chapter 3 of Winter. Enjoy!


The music glided through the air in sweet melodies. Her once anxious mood shifted into a pleasant one as she thought back to when her father would hum along to this song.

The Eclipse Waltz….

She was leaning casually against one of the palace's balconies. It was a peaceful scene unlike the chaos inside. The Artemisia night was sprinkled heavily with stars. Winter had ran out of the Palace's Ball using the excuse for a breath of fresh air. Truthfully, Winter had wanted to escape for a number of reasons. But mostly, she wanted the stares and whispers of her face to disappear. It had been a year since Levanna had used her Lunar powers against Winter, and now rumors had been causing a storm of accusations. She looked on to the Palace gardens, remembering when her father would dance with her…

"Princess?"

She jumped and turned with her dress sliding along her body. Her eyes showed a brown-haired teenage boy, a little out of breath, and pink in the face. He must have been a new guard. Most guards never left her alone for too long. "Princess Winter, I've been looking for you. Are you alright?"

She gave him a sweet smile and watched as his face turned from pink to red in seconds. "Everything is fine, I was just admiring the gardens below."

The young guard gave a confused stare as he peered behind her. "But…. Princess…. those aren't the gardens." He walked closer and stared ahead of the balcony. "The gardens are on the opposite side of the Palace. This is the lake."

Winter stared at the gardens…. or lake? She blinked several times and then slowly as it faded away, the gardens shifted to the view of the lake. Her heart stopped only for a beat as she stared ahead. She knew suppressing her lunar powers would cause some insanity, but she didn't realize how soon it would come. She thought in shock that she would have never known what she was looking at unless the guard had told her.

"I-I… Right, of course. That's what I meant."

A voice she had recognized instantly, filled the air. "Princess."

She watched as he bowed his head and stared emotionless.

She smiled, her stomach flopping with nervousness. Her thoughts of insanity disappearing, if only for a moment.

Jacin…

He turned to the brown haired boy. "Sir Aaron, I have orders from Thaumaturge Auden for you to report to the front doors."

"Now?"

"No," Jacin starred deadpanned. "In 3 hours, once you've walked about and enjoyed some cake."

Catching onto the sarcasm, Aaron quickly walked to the door, but stopped as if he forgot something.

"What about the Princess? Who will watch her?"

"I will. Now go, before I mention your incompetence to Thaumaturge Auden."

And with that, Aaron quickly bowed and left the balcony.

"Jacin," Winter left her stance at the Balcony's edge and walked up to him. "You shouldn't be so hard on him. He's new."

He gave a frustrated glance at the doors the boy left through. "Being a guard is a honor. For him to casually leave you alone, unattended …. its unacceptable."

She quirked her lips, her eyebrows raising slightly. "I think I could handle myself."

His expression immediately changed, and softened. "I'm sorry Princess, that's not what I meant. You just need to be safe. I watched the way some of these drunk men looked—"

"Do you want to dance?"

Winter knew it was sudden, but she just didn't want to hear what he would say. Besides, the end of her favorite song was close and she couldn't be happy without a dance with him.

"W-what?" His handsome face turned to confusion. Something she rarely saw occur.

She swayed a little to the music, placing her hands lightly on his shoulders, testing the waters.

He stiffened slightly and made Winter laugh in return. He was like a deer, wide eyed and still in quietness. That made her smile even more. She had never compared Jacin to something like a deer, but this fit the moment perfectly.

"It's my favorite."

His eyes, usually so cold and icy to others, warmed into an orb of a sparklingly ocean for her. "I know."

"It's almost ending… Please?"

"I don't know how to dance…"

Without a word, Winter grabbed his hand and slipped it onto the curve of her waist. She then fit her hand into his like a glove and smiled lightly above at his face.

"It's simple. Follow my feet…. 1..2..1..2…3..4..5.."

He moved awkwardly as she moved effortlessly graceful. She giggled as she watched him, several steps behind her.

"Here, say it with me."

"1..2..1…2, " Together they chanted, as he followed slowly, but smoothly along with her. "3..4…5"

"There you go!" And as she flashed him a big smile, she watched as his gaze lasted longer on her face then usual. Then suddenly, he launched forward as his misplaced foot became stuck in her dress. She let out a squeal of surprise, as they tumbled to the ground. Before they landed hard, Jacin grabbed Winter and shifted her so he could land on the ground before her.

Winter opened her eyes, forgetting she had closed them and blushed. She was laying on top of him–chest to chest–with her ear laying on top of his heart. His heart seemed to be pounding, as did hers.

"Winter, I'm so sorry. Are you okay?" He still had an arm gripped tightly across the back of her waist. He was shaking her slightly with his other hand on her shoulder.

She looked at his face, staring at his eyes. They were filled with immense concern. And she gazed at his halo of long golden hair, frazzled and messy from the aftermath of their failed dancing lesson. In the background, the Eclipse Waltz faded, only to be replaced by a song with a slow beat.

She wondered if he ever thought about her as something more than a best friend.

She licked her lips and whispered, "Jacin…"

She didn't know who leaned in first, but it seemed as if they were magnets. Closing the distance quickly, but with purpose. And with only a few inches of space left to close, the door opened suddenly.

Queen Levanna.

Her beautiful expression–once neutral–twitched in shock, then settled in a smile that resembled revenge and amusement.

Jacin and Winter scrambled quickly to their feet. She couldn't help but notice how far apart they were now. So different from just moments ago.

Her step-mother's grey eyes glinted with an expression that made Winter fear what would happen. And suddenly Winter wished she could just get a glimpse of what Levanna was thinking.

Finally, in a fake disappointment, a twisted smile spread on her face. "Sir Jacin Clay… it pains me to think you were taking advantage of my step-daughter."

Fin.

Notes: I'm not sure if I should continue, but I feel comfortable leaving it there. Anyways, in the book Winter, Winter mentioned that she hadn't touched Jacin since the Eclipse Waltz when they were 14 and 16. So I thought maybe after the embarrassing moment, Queen Levanna assumed Jacin forced himself on Winter, knowing he really didn't. But knowing Winter and Jacin had a crush on each other, Levanna warned him to not touch her ever again. Maybe that's why he's very uncomfortable when she tries to touch him in the first three chapters of Winter. Just a guess:) Let me know what you guys think! - Laughingcactus62 Thanks for reading:) This was inspired by Asteria's The Eclipse Waltz. You can find her short story at: /works/3790642

BTW: IF YOU HAVE ANY SCENCES OR IDEAS-NO MATTER THE LUNAR CHRONICLES CHARATER-LET ME KNOW. IM OPEN TO ANYTHING.


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